"It's really critical in this down economy to keep investing in strategic needs," says Alok Verma, MBA '09, who chaired the 2009 MBA class gift drive. "Every member of our class has benefitted from the generosity of Johnson School alumni." Like Verma, Raju Venkatraman, MBA '09 (E), who led the Palisades Executive MBA campaign, and Julie Chase and Ian Major, both MBA '09 (CQ), who co-chaired the Cornell-Queen's Executive MBA effort, proved that people will rally to a cause they believe in, even in tough times. Of course, a sound strategy, aggressive effort, and a little arm-twisting help!

All of the class campaigns were conducted anonymously—the chairs and their teams did not track the size of individual gifts. They paid attention to the regular reports provided by the Annual Fund staff, though, closely monitoring who had made a gift and the total amount of the gifts. And they kept the heat on those who had not yet made a commitment. The result: in all three campaigns, the percentage of participation was exceptionally high.